Planning to join a tree planting event?

Hold up, you might be doing more harm than good.

Do the trees you plant actually help nature? It depends.

As far as helping nature goes, “Plant a tree” probably rules the Top 10 list of things you can do for nature, beating out “Recycle” and “Don’t litter.”

And for good reason.

I’ve been taught since I was a kid, and you probably were too, that trees create oxygen, store water, house wildlife, and that planting a tree does a whole lot of good in the world.

It does, but too bad they never taught us how to do it the right way.